Blog · 2 May 2025 · 5 min read
How to Get More Google Reviews as a Tradie (Without Being Awkward)
Most tradies do brilliant work and have terrible Google reviews. Not because customers aren't happy — because nobody's asking. Here's the simple automated system that fixes it.
Why your reviews don't reflect your work
Happy customers forget. Unhappy customers don't. That's why the average Aussie tradie has a Google profile that doesn't look anything like their actual workmanship.
The fix isn't asking harder face-to-face. It's automating a friendly text the moment the job's done.
The 5-star gating trick (the legal one)
Send every customer a one-tap rating link after the job. If they tap five stars, they go straight to your Google review page. If they tap four or below, they go to a private feedback form so you can fix it before it ever hits Google.
This is allowed under Google's policies as long as you ask every customer the same question and don't filter based on identity. It's the same approach Get Booked Out builds in for every customer at /rate-us.
When to ask
Within two hours of the job being marked complete. Wait until tomorrow and your conversion rate falls off a cliff.
Send by SMS, not email — open rates on tradie review SMS sit around 95% versus 20% for email.
Doing it without lifting a finger
Get Booked Out fires the review request automatically the second a job is marked done in your calendar or CRM. Most customers see it before they've even washed their hands. That's how you go from 12 reviews to 120 in a year without ever feeling pushy.